The Delhi unit of the BJP on Sunday put up a show of strength at the Ramlila Maidan, where leaders from various factions within the party turned up to make the rally against a power tariff hike a success.
Delhi BJP president Vijay Goel had support from leaders of wary factions, that included leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly VK Malhotra, former Delhi BJP president Vijender Gupta, BJP national secretary and former Delhi Mayor Arti Mehra, former State president Harsh Vardhan and Vijay Jolly, among others.
However, BJP’s Delhi election in-charge Nitin Gadkari and party’s co-convener for Delhi affairs Navjot Singh Sidhu were conspicuous by their absence. Workers and supporters of the BJP, who turned up in large numbers from across the Capital, cheered as the leaders univocally took on the Congress-led Government and pledged for its ouster in the Assembly polls slated for November, this year.
An estimated crowd of over 10,000, mostly party workers, were not disappointed to see their leaders putting up a united show at Ramlila Maidan. This assumes greater significance in the wake of the fact that the party also kick-started its campaign for the Assembly polls with an aim to hold the seat of power after a gap of 15 years.
Other senior leaders like Ramesh Bidhuri, Jagdish Mukhi, Vani Tripathy, former State president OP Kohli, Mayors in the three municipal corporations — Azad Singh, Sarita Chaudhary and Ram Narayan Dubey — along with all office bearers of Delhi BJP were present on the dais.
Elated, former MlA and senior Delhi BJP leader Vijay Jolly went on to claim ‘all is well’ within the party. “We are committed to dislodge the Congress-led Government. All is well in the BJP. We will fight together to achieve the goal,” Jolly announced. Jolly had been critical of the functioning of Delhi BJP president Vijay Goel and was even present during the meeting of a section of party leaders with State election in-charge Nitin Gadkari on Friday.
leaders of the factions had also met and demanded from the Central leadership to contest the election collectively, rather than projecting a chief ministerial candidate like the BJP had done in 2008 with VK Malhotra.Harsh Vardhan, whom a section within the party wants to be projected as the Chief Minister, also voiced his confidence to oust the incumbent Government by fighting the Congress as a team.